Lulu

This post is a little belated but never mind.

My book, Waiting for Wings, is now available to buy in paperback.

I've used Lulu, a self-publishing, print on demand company.

I did this because, not only do I trust them to create a brilliant finished product, but by going with them I'm chopping out the middle man from the equation. Middle man being the hard-to-reach-publisher.

I received a contract in March from a publishing house. I was very excited at the prospect. The subject in the email I received said, 'Contract book offer.' I can remember sitting back in my chair before opening it and saying, 'Sh*t, this is real.'

I read through the contract and it seemed OK to the layman that I am, but I decided it would be wise to get a solicitor friend to read through it, to which, when she did, pointed out some factors that didn't sit very well with her - and later, myself.

The more I thought about accepting the offer, the more fuzzy my stomach felt.

I tell people all the time to follow their gut instinct; it was time to take my own advice.

I declined the offer with the trust that something better would come along.

Lulu was brought to my attention about three years ago and since then I've visited their site several times and looked at what was on offer (in terms of the genres they covered, how much they charged the customer AND the author etc) and that fuzzy feeling never once made an appearance.

My aim, since completing Waiting for Wings, has been to get it out there to as many people as possible - as quickly as possible, and by using Lulu the speed of making it available was achieved.

Now it's just up to me to get it out there - but I won't turn down your help.

I know, from what I've been told by those who have read it and reviewed it (thanks to all of you) that people will gain something of value from reading the story.

As the review by Felicity Warner (Author of Gentle Dying and the founder of Soul Midwives Foundation) says, 'A wonderfully uplifting book, which I would recommend to anybody fearing the process of death or living with a degenerative disease'.

I'm massively grateful to have been (and continue to be) part of this process with the book - it's a real journey, and with it being my first book I'm learning a lot.

I'm currently working on a new project; a short illustrated book on bereavement for 4 to 6 year olds. It's being illustrated by my good friend, Laura Skilbeck. I can assure you it's going to look great when it's completed. I've seen her ideas - and I'm excited!

The ball is rolling faster than ever now with Waiting for Wings and I've always believed that word of mouth will play a big part in getting it to the right people at the right time in their lives.

If you have read it and think someone you know will benefit from its message then please feel free to pass it on.

Once again, thank you.

If you haven't already seen the book, the following link will take you straight to it:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/gavin-whyte/waiting-for-wings-a-story-of-hope/paperback/product-20138926.html